Israel says it carried out a “joint” US missile launch in the Mediterranean, having earlier claimed ignorance. Russian radars detected two ballistic rockets fired in the region on Tuesday, sparking widespread speculation over who was behind the launch.

A spokesperson for the Israeli army confirmed that a launch of a
missile had been carried out 9:15am local time (06:15 GMT),
adding that US forces in the Mediterranean had been given prior
warning of the drill.

A fighter jet launched an Ankor-type (“Sparrow”) missile as part
of a drill to test the Israeli missile defense system. However,
earlier, when the Russian government announced it had detected
the firing of "two ballistic objects" in the area, Israel
insisted it had no “information on this issue yet.”

Despite Israeli claimed of a “joint US” missile launch,
the American Navy maintained that no rockets were launched by US
forces in the region.

"No missiles were fired from US ships in the
Mediterranean," said the spokesman, who made no further
comment on the matter.

Other members of the international community were quick to follow
suit with France, UK and Italy denying any knowledge of the test
launch. NATO said it was investigating the incident.

The Pentagon later admitted that the Israeli missile test in the
Mediterranean was carried out “with technical support of the
US Defense Department.”

The test was also “pre-planned,” according to the US
Defense Department spokesman George Little quoted by Itar-Tass.

The Israeli Defense Ministry confirmed a US defense agency took
part in a “successful flight test of the new version of the
Sparrow target missile” in an e-mail statement to RT Arabic.

“Israel’s Missile Defense Organization and the US Missile
Defense Agency officials conducted the flight test. The main
contractor for the integration and development of the Sparrow is
Rafael and the main contractor of the Arrow Weapon System is MLM
of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) in conjunction with
Boeing,” the statement explained.

The Russian Defense Ministry initially reported that “two
ballistic objects” were picked up on radars in the central
Mediterranean and were moving towards the East. Later, citing a
security source inside the Syrian government, RIA Novosti
reported that the rockets had fallen into the sea.

Meanwhile, Syria’s missile detection system did not pick up any
rockets landing on Syrian territory, a security source told
Lebanese channel al-Manar TV.

Tipping the balance?

Tensions are running high in the Mediterranean as world powers
discuss possible military intervention in Syria after the
reported use of chemical weapons in a Damascus suburb on August
21.

The Syrian government has rejected claims of its complicity in
the opposition-controlled Damascus suburb of Ghouta and has
called on the UN to protect it from western aggression. In a
letter to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the Assad regime urged
the UN to “maintain its role as a safety valve to prevent the
absurd use of force out of the frame of international
legitimacy.”

Russia has slammed US plans to launch a military strike on Syria,
as they would thwart attempts to end the conflict peacefully.

"If the action announced by the US president – to the great
regret of all of us – does in fact take place... it will put off
the chances of [holding] this conference for a long time, if not
forever," said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Moreover, Syrian President Bashar Assad has warned that a
military strike on Syria by the West would send the situation
spiraling out of control and trigger a regional conflict.

“The Middle East is barrel of powder and today the flames are
creeping closer. It is not just a question of the Syrian
response, but what else might happen after the first [Western]
air strike,” Assad told French newspaper Le Figaro.